| The
Willow School Faculty
We are very pleased to present
the biographical information for our outstanding faculty:
Lauren Morse - Preschool Co-teacher
Email: lmorse@willowschool.org
Lauren earned her B.A. degree in English literature from Colgate University.
In 2005, Lauren served as a kindergarten aide at The Willow School, which inspired her to pursue teaching as
a career. Lauren earned her Masters of Science in Early Childhood Education from Bank Street College of
Education in New York City. Prior to rejoining The Willow School faculty, Lauren served as an assistant
teacher at Trevor Day School and as a head teacher at York Avenue Preschool, both in Manhattan. Lauren lives
in New Jersey with her husband.
Jessica Katchen - Preschool Co-teacher
Email: jkatchen@willowschool.org
Jessica holds a B.A. degree in Education from Boston College and
a Masters Degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in Early Childhood from Lesley University
in Cambridge, MA. Jessica spent six years teaching environmental education on Nantucket Island, MA through
a year-round program called Strong Wings. Following this experience, she spent six years teaching at Far
Hills Country Day School in grades pre-k, Kindergarten and second grade. Jessica and her husband live in
Gladstone. Their two daughters attend The Willow School.
Julie
Kim - Kindergarten
Teacher
Email: jkim@willowschool.org
Julie holds a Bachelor of Arts
degree in sociology from Rutgers University. Upon graduation she
worked as a legal assistant at a law firm in Dallas, Texas. Since
then she has earned her full teaching certificate at The Princeton
Center for Teacher Education. Prior to coming to The Willow School,
she served as a head teacher at The Albrook School in Basking Ridge,
NJ. While at Albrook she served as a mentor teacher to student
teachers guiding them in their understanding of educational philosophies
and its implementation. Julie has also taken training and is qualified
to serve as an AMS School Consultant. As a consultant, Julie is
eligible to help schools verify processes and procedures, identify
its skills and talents, assist teachers in identifying goals and
examining potential areas of growth.
Katie Lombardo – Kindergarten Associate Teacher
Email: klombardo@willowschool.org
Having completed her B.A. degree, Katie is now pursuing her Masters Degree in
Education at Fairleigh Dickinson University while serving as associate teacher. Under the guidance
of Amy Swenson, she will continue to broaden her experience and assume more responsibility in the
First Grade classroom. Before coming to Willow, she worked as a teacher's aide in special education
at the Mary Cariola Children's Center in Rochester NY.
Amy Swenson- First Grade Teacher
Email: aswenson@willowschool.org
Amy Swenson- Amy has earned a Bachelor of Science in Elementary
Education from Brigham Young in Utah. She has earned Montessori
Teaching Credentials having served as head of school and teacher
of upper elementary education for a Montessori School in Massachusetts.
During her time at The Albrook School she served as Assistant
and Advisor to the Head of School. Amy has also taught Preschool
and Kindergarten at a local Montessori school. Amy brings with
her some thirty years of cumulative teaching experience. She
and her husband live in Budd Lake.
Tara VanDette – First Grade Assistant
Email: tvandette@willowschool.org
Tara holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Advertising from Penn State.
She participated in Semester at Sea, a once-in a lifetime learning opportunity, literally sailing
around the world and receiving a global education. After graduation, Tara worked as a Corporate
Event/Meeting Planner for several years, and then enrolled in an alternate route program for her
K-5 certification in elementary education. Tara has three years teaching experience at the Kindergarten and
First Grade level in both private and public school settings. Tara is associated with Project U.S.E.,
an experiential education organization, and has worked as a tutor and a facilitator of outdoor adventure
courses. Tara has been a Guest Teacher at Willow since January 2009. Tara lives in Morristown with her husband.
Paul Parker - Second Grade
Teacher
Email: pparker@willowschool.org
Paul brings over thirty years of teaching experience to his
current position as second grade teacher at The Willow School.
The majority of his classroom teaching has been with primary
students in small schools on the northwest coast of Newfoundland,
Canada. In addition to his primary teaching assignments, he has
taught a variety of specialty elementary subjects including Science,
Computer Science, French and Physical Education. Paul has attended
the Programme Special de Français at the University of
Laval and received a primary teaching certificate from the Ottawa
Teachers College, a B.Sc. from the University of Waterloo and
a B.Ed. from Mount Saint Vincent University. Paul was a founding
member and field coordinator of the Northern Cultural Heritage
Project, which combined scientific research and educational training
for Inuit high school students in Canada’s Eastern Arctic.
Before joining The Willow School staff, Paul was an alternative
education teacher for the Maquatua Eeyou School in Northern Quebec.
In this program, Cree students with social and emotional issues
pursued academic and traditional studies in both classroom and
bush camp settings. Over the course of his teaching career, Paul
has done curriculum development projects for the classroom, school
and a variety of other organizations including Parks Canada.
Deidre Cooper-Boyce – Third Grade Teacher
Email: dcooper@willowschool.org
Deidre Cooper-Boyce - Deidre is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Long Island
University, Georgetown University Law Center and Brooklyn College. She holds a B.A. in English
and Sociology, a Juris Doctorate and an M.S. in Elementary Education. After practicing real estate
and family law in New York State, she became a teacher with the NYC Department of Education and has
since worked in 3 other public school districts teaching grades 3-12. Deidre also worked at Packer
Collegiate Institute as an assistant first grade teacher. She is certified as an elementary teacher
in both New York and Pennsylvania and as a Reading Specialist in Pennsylvania. Most recently she has
lived in Pennsylvania for the past 5 years working as a high school reading specialist. She has two sons
and is now returning to NJ to join the Willow School.
Carol Fontaine – Fourth Grade Teacher
Email: cfontaine@willowschool.org
Carol earned a BFA degree from Pratt Institute
and Montessori certification at the Elementary level from The
Center for Montessori Teacher Education at The College of New
Rochelle. She has also taken advanced academic courses in Philosophy
at Southern Connecticut State College. For over ten years, Carol
served as head elementary teacher and art teacher at The Albrook
School in Basking Ridge. In addition, she has served as advisor
to student teachers for both The Center for Montessori Teacher
Education and The Houston Montessori Center. Carol has also taken
training and is qualified to serve as a School Consultant for
the American Montessori Society.
Jodi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers in Psychology.
She completed her post-baccalaureate K-8 teaching certification at Kean College.
Currently, Jodi is pursuing her 5-8 Science Certification. She has a wide array of teaching
experience in public, private and charter schools. Jodi has spent the last four years teaching
in sunny Florida where she focused on creating a curriculum that integrates both Writing and Science.
Jodi has just moved to New Jersey with her husband.
Suzzanne Mahoney - Science Teacher
Grades K - 4
Email: smahoney@willowschool.org
For 12 years Suzzanne
was a naturalist in the Morris County Park System, and for four
years before that she was a Licensed Practical Nurse. Most
recently she was a teacher’s assistant at Spruce Run School
in Clinton, NJ. As an additional job, Suzzanne will be the
director of our summer camp, which will open in July of 2006. She
received her B.A. in Biology from Kean University.
Shannon Downey – Language Arts Teacher and Middle School Director
Email: sdowney@willowschool.org
Shannon will have dual responsibilities as a reading specialist
and language arts teacher. She earned her B.A. from St. Vincent
College in Latrobe, PA and has been pursuing a master’s degree
in elementary education from Seton Hall University. Shannon
is certified in the state of New Jersey as an elementary teacher
and has been both a participant and a presenter at numerous curriculum
and reading workshops. Before joining the Willow School faculty,
Shannon was a fifth and sixth grade teacher at the North Star Academy
Charter School in Newark, NJ.
Michael Chodroff - Middle School Science Teacher
Email: mchodroff@willowschool.org
Michael comes to the Willow School holding a
Bachelor of Arts degree from Rutgers in Communication and Journalism.
He completed his post-baccalaureate K-8 teaching certification
at Kean College. Currently, Michael is pursuing his MA in Educational
Technology. In 2003 Michael was the recipient of the NJ Dept of
Education Commissioner’s Distinguished Teacher Award. He
has been nominated for the NJ Preserve America History Teacher
of the Year Award and the Richard C. Bartlett Education Award.
Michael will visit the Galapagos Islands as a volunteer with ELI
Abroad teaching computers during the summer of 2008. Michael
lives in East Brunswick.
Liliana Lisbao – Middle
School History Teacher
Email: llisbao@willowschool.org
Liliana Lisbao, now in
her fifth year at The Willow School, brings sixteen years of experience
in educational planning and teaching at the preschool and kindergarten
level. Prior to joining The Willow School faculty, she was
the director of The Magic Garden Preschool in Highland Park NJ. In
addition to her role as director, Liliana developed and taught
after-school programs in history, art and creative writing
for elementary school children. She holds a Bachelor of Arts
degree from Rutgers University.
Thomas Williams -
Middle School Math Teacher
Email: twilliams@willowschool.org
Tom comes to the Willow School after many
years as Sixth Grade Math Teacher and homeroom teacher at the Pingry School
in Short Hills and then in Martinsville, New Jersey. At Pingry, he won the
Woodruff J. English Award, which recognized teachers who instill in their students
a love of learning and commitment to living the ideals of the School’s Honor Code. Previously,
he taught high school math at Westminster School in Connecticut, and then he had a
business career, eventually becoming President and C.E.O. of the Bates Manufacturing
Company in Hackettstown, New Jersey. Tom has his B.A. in American Civilization from
Williams College, his M.B.A. in Finance from the Wharton Graduate School of the University
of Pennsylvania, and his M.A.T. in Elementary Education from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
He and his wife live in nearby Pottersville and they have two grown sons.
Catherine Luborsky - Teacher
of French and Spanish
Email: cluborsky@willowschool.org
Catherine brings over twenty year of experience
in teaching French to The Willow School. Previously, she
taught at the Freie Waldorf Schule Wangen in Germany, the Hartsbrook
School in Hadley Massachusets and the Kimberton Walforf School
in Kimberton Pennsylvania where she was also the exchange program
coordinator and a mentor to incoming language teachers. Catherine
has taught primarily lower school classes but instructed middle
and high school grades for six years in Pennsylvania. She
got her Baccalaureat from the Lycée Victor
Hugo in Poitiers, France and studied Russian for three years
at the Institut des Langues et Civilisations Orientales at
the Sorbonne University in Paris.
Linda Cowperthwaite - Middle School Latin Teacher
Email: lcowperthwaite@willowschool.org
Linda holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Drew University with
an emphasis on Education and Child Development. For the last two seasons at Willow, Linda helped
coach the girls' lacrosse team. Linda's passion for athletics led her to develop the Chester-Mendham
girls' lacrosse team for 7 seasons as a volunteer coach for girls in grades four through eight. Linda
has been teaching Latin privately over the last 16 years and most recently with The Chandler Learning
Center in Bedminster, New Jersey. Linda lives in Califon with her husband and two children, both of whom
attend Willow.
Scott Beil - Art Teacher
Email: sbeil@willowschool.org
Scott Beil- Scott has earned a Master’s Degree in Fine
Arts from Montclair State University and a Bachelor’s Degree
in Arts Education from College of New Jersey. Most recently Scott
was employed at the Matheny Medical and Educational Centers the
Arts Access Art Education Coordinator and Studio Manager at Matheny
Medical and Educational Center, where he was responsible for the
creation and implementation for a multidisciplinary art education
program for students with severe developmental disabilities. Scott
has shown his work at various galleries in NY and NJ, Hunter Times
Square Gallery, MFA Gallery, Limner Gallery and Bowery Gallery.
He was recently featured as an artist at the MSU MFA show at the
White Box Annex in NYC. Scott has received the Somerset Cultural
and Heritage Commission Excellence in the Arts Award in 2007. He
lives in Flanders with his wife.
Brian Gary – Physical
Education and After School Sports Teacher
Email: bgary@willowschool.org
A native New Yorker attended Springfield College in Massachusetts where he majored in physical Ed,
The National Academy of Design in NYC, and the Rijks Academy in the Netherlands majoring in fine art
painting and drawing. Brian is a former player- coach for a professional basketball team in the Netherlands
and USATF track and field coach. Brian also was the physical education and health teacher for The Unity
Charter School in Morristown whose charter is based on sustainability and ecology. Most recently, Brian was
the physical education teacher for the Albrook School in Basking Ridge bringing world games, new games,
traditional and non traditional games to that curriculmn. He has conducted several workshops in world games
and game development for The Montessori Society in NJ. In addition Brian exhibits and conducts art workshops
in the tri state area in ceramics and collage. He has completed his apprenticeship at The Morarvian Tile Works
in traditional tile design and mold making. He is a member of the New Museum, NY Botanical Gardens and USATF.
Brian lives in Morristown with his family.
Karen Abrams Hilde - Handcrafts
and Architecture
Email: khilde@willowschool.org
Before beginning her own practice
in 1997, Karen worked for a number of architectural firms, including
Michael Graves and Associates in Princeton, doing commercial, educational,
and residential work. A commitment to sustainable architecture
is what initially made her aware of The Willow School, but it was
the school's academic philosophy that engaged her. Karen holds
a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Cornell University's College
of Architecture, Art and Planning in addition to formal art training
in multiple mediums. Along with her formal architectural training,
Karen brings her enthusiasm and love of teaching and her experience
in curriculum planning.
Gina Lefferts - Performing
Arts
Email: glefferts@willowschool.org
Gina Lefferts graduated magna cum
laude in 1978 from Goucher College and Peabody Conservatory. She
received her MA in historical musicology from Columbia University
in 1984. After many years of teaching, she went back to school
to receive certification in the Kodaly method from NYU. Gina has
taught music in a variety of settings since 1976. She has taught
private piano lessons from 1976 to the present as well as music
theory, piano, and music history at the Brooklyn Conservatory of
Music from 1980-1989. During that time, she also founded a music
and movement program for pre-schoolers and coordinated outreach
programs into Brooklyn public schools. Gina went on to teach children
in grades five through eight at Berkeley Carroll Street School
in Brooklyn. In 1993, she moved to Colorado and collaborated with
other parents to found a Waldorf-inspired public school in Boulder.
She taught at Friends School and then at Alexander Dawson School
in Colorado until she moved back to the east coast this summer
to begin teaching at The Willow School.
Meg Brandt - Librarian and Reading Specialist
Email: mbrandt@willowschool.org
Meg holds a BA in English from Rutgers College and a MA in Reading from Montclair State University.
She is a certified Reading Specialist and Teacher of English K-12. Meg is currently enrolled in the
Rutgers University School of Communication and Information for Associate School Library Media Specialist
Certification. She has taught middle school language arts as well as journalism and religion. Meg and
her husband have four children and live in Chester.
Kim Valentine - Service Learning and After School Enrichment Coordinator
Email: kvalentine@willowschool.org
Kim is a graduate of the University of California at Davis where she earned a B.S. in
Human Development with and emphasis on Child Development. She has also completed work
towards her California Elementary Teaching Credential at Cal State Northridge and Notre
Dame de Namur University. Kim is also working towards a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology
from Antioch University. She comes to Willow School with over ten years of teaching experience
in both Public and Independent school settings. In addition to teaching, Kim has taken on a
variety of roles at the schools where she has taught, including Faculty Representative to the
Board of Trustees, Community Service Coordinator, yearbook editor and photographer, and Assistant
Softball coach. A native Californian, Kim moved to New Jersey two years ago with her husband.
John Brandi - School
Psychologist
Email: jbrandi@willowschool.org
John enjoys an active career in both academic and applied psychology. Prior to joining Willow School in 2010,
John consulted nationally for Liberty Behavioral Healthcare, where he developed numerous programs in motivation
and performance enhancement, as well as supervised school and clinical assessments. Academically, he is currently
a member of the Psychology Department at New Jersey City University where he teaches human learning
and motivation, developmental psychology, social psychology and research statistics. In addition,
he develops annual symposiums in Positive Psychology. John is also an Assistant Coach for Montclair
State University Baseball, where he coaches the mental and motivational aspects of the game. He also
has many years of experience coaching New Jersey high school football, as well as other sports.
John attended Fordham University, for both undergraduate and graduate degrees.
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